Day 3 of African Athletics Championships: Conseslus Kipruto, Winnie Chebet strike gold in Asaba

Korir settles for silver in 800m as Botswana’s Amos races to gold medal.

Olympic 3,000m steeplechase champion Conseslus Kipruto bagged Kenya’s second gold medal at the 21st Africa Senior Athletics Championships inside Stephen Keshi Stadium in Asaba, Nigeria on Friday.

After Kipruto had struck Kenya’s gold, Winny Chebet added to the medal tally with victory in the women 1,500m race.

Kipruto has no doubt entered the elite club of 3,000m steeplechase greats, having swept all glamorous titles –save for IAAF Inter-Continental Championships.

He’s perhaps among the few athletes who shone across all age categories and big meetings. Sample his calling card: World Under-18 (Lille, 2011), World Under-20 (Barcelona, 2012), World Champions (London, 2017), Olympic Games (Rio, 2016), IAAF Diamond League Trophy (2016) and the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, Australia, last April.

Kipruto beat Morocco’s Soufianne El Bakkali, the winner of IAAF Diamond League meeting in Monaco.

In another race, USA-based Emmanuel Korir settled for silver in 800m behind Botswana’s Nijel Amos who controlled the race with 200m to the finish line. Moroccan Smaili Mostopha won bronze.  

Kenya’s Jonathan Kitilit who led the race from the start took the wooden spoon.

In 400m, former national champion Alfas Kishoyian finished fourth while Jared Momanyi finished eighth.

Botswana’s Thebe Baboloki won gold in 47.68 seconds as Phora Thapelo of South Africa settled for silver while homeboy Chidi Okezie won bronze.

Women’s 400m title went to South Africa’s Caster Semenya who won the race in 49.66 seconds while Christine Botslegwe of Botswana took silver with Nigerian Yinka Ajayi settlling for bronze. Kenya’s Veronica Mutua finished seventh.

It was another poor show for the Kenyans in men’s 400m hurdles final, with all the three Kenyans that included 2015 event’s world champion Nicholas Bett, Aaron Koech and Willy Mbevi failing to impress with Koech finishing outside the podium in fourth place.

Mbevi came home in seventh place while Bett, pulled what appeared like an hamstring at the 100m homestretch.

The gold medal went to Abdel Malik Lahoulou of Algeria timing 48.47 seconds, Cornel Fredricks of South Africa held on silver and Tunisia’s Zied Aziz collected bronze medal.

Meanwhile, world 5,000m champion Hellen Obiri was elated after opening Kenya’s gold medal account on Thursday.

“It was very hot but I know I prepared well,” Obiri said. “In championship races you use your common sense on when you should go. I was feeling good so I decided that was the best time.”

Obiri clocked 15:47.18 to win by more than ten seconds and secure her spot on the African squad for the IAAF Continental Cup Ostrava 2018, where the distance she’ll race will be the 3000m.

“It will be a hard race so I plan to prepare more over the next few weeks,” she said.